Mind Chess
by BlackCavern
Summary: Ephraim is defeated in River's Mind Chess, now it's Lyon's turn.
1. Courage is for Fools

I was having a bad, no beyond bad day. And miraculously it didn't have anything to do with being the new king of Renais, you see, even I had to admit this: power is sweet, unbridled power is sweeter. No, the problem was River and no not the body of water. You see there's this boy, actually not really a boy seeing as how he was two years older then me. River was an expert in history, an arch-historian if you will, an arch-historian in military history and apparently a library apparatus on criticism.

River comes from Frelia, despite being generally a young kid from King Hayden's point of view, he was highly regarded in the Frelian court. Not for his court manners, but mostly for his severe bluntness.

Oh boy, Innes is gonna have one hell of a time when he ascends. I bet he's never met someone who's even more dry and emotionless then himself. Very true! Despite his razor sharp wit, River was also consistently pessimistic. Well enough of this, let me explain why he's giving me a hard time.

You remember that war? The one where the Demon King took over my friend Prince Lyon's body and invaded my homeland and forced my sister out of her own castle and killed my father and sent me on a Magvell wide campaign to reclaim the throne and kill the Demon King so poor Lyon would be freed? Any candles going up over your head yet?

River has no respect for chivalry and apparently has no fear of being killed by an egotistic monarch since he readily points out mistakes in such a way that it'll make Dozla flinch.

"A Prince, should have no care or thought for war and for the regulations and training it requires. For war is the sole art looked for in one who rules and is of such efficacy that is not merely maintains those who are born princes but often enables men to rise to that eminence from a private station. While on the other hand, we often see that when Princes devote themselves rather to pleasure than to arms, they lose their dominions." his carefully censored voice made it sound like an original thought instead of a quote.

"And what's that suppose to mean?" I retorted.

"Let me use smaller words: If Prince is smart, Prince will not think about war. But if Prince only does things that Prince wants to do, Prince loses his domain. And the latter prince happens to be you Prince Ephraim!" River retorted back matching my angry tone. "What?! Why would you say that?" I snapped, normally I'm not this impatient but this kid really knows how to get under your skin.

"You ran off into Grado with two cavaliers completely unaware of the mounting hostilities of war. You indulge only in your spearmenship and pay no attention to the intrigues of court. You trust too easily and have faith consistently to chivalry."

"It's called honor River." I reminded trying to keep calm. Spending time with Lyon had steadily reduced my confidence in my ability to win games of wit (seeing as how our chess records were 36-0, me being the zero) so I was absolutely not a match for some Frelian arch-historian, but I wasn't losing without a fight. "Courage and honor brings you respect from your peers."

"Is that right?" And so like a wise chess player, so began River's game of leading me into his traps. "Courage is the strength to stand up against unbeatable odds if I'm not mistaken. So courage means that you'll jump in front of a batallion of charging horses despite knowing that you'll be trampled to death?"

"No! It's risking your life for the people you cared for!" I answered through gritted teeth.

"So let's say your wife Queen Tana somehow dropped the ring that her mother had given to her when she was a child in the path of the battalion of charging horses. So would you be a courageous person and _then _jump in front of the horses even though you'll still get trampled to death?" River countered sharply.

"Well I-I uh...." The trap had sprung and I had just been deprived of my front defense of pawns.

"But let's forget the horses and put in a more likely situation shall we?" River had his hand on his knight piece. "Let's take the War of the Stones, and instead of the battalion let's take the mercenaries and outside forces you took in. You realize that the Grado forces that surrendered and joined your army were weak in their resolve in abandoning their country?"

I meantally grasped at the strength of my rooks in their strong and straightfoward power. "They wanted to end the Demon King's reign of terror and restore peace to their country."

"Is that so? Well think about it like this, each knight and soldier alike takes a vow to their monarch when they enter the royal family's service correct? Haven't you ever heard the saying: 'Our's is not to wonder why, Our's is just to do and die'? They were poor soldiers in breaking an adamant vow." There goes one of my rooks, I grabbed at the other.

"It is their loyalty to _human kind_ that either of us are living!" I grinned thinking that I had cornered him.

"But wasn't that need for betraying their homeland only necessary because you were too trusting? I don't believe that Prince Lyon would've had the strength to think to bring forth such a demonic power if your friendship did not arouse such jealously and among other emotions." And there went my other rook piece. River took his hand off his knight piece and prepared his bishops and their deception. "Surely if you were more wary of Prince Lyon you would've prepared for war sooner or maybe just stayed home and stopped the invasion before it started."

I looked down at my mental board, my rooks were gone and so were my pawns. My knights would be practically useless and so would any other deceptive piece. I picked my queen in a final defense.

"The war taught us something about our selves. We shall not make mistakes that we would've made in the past." I proclaimed fiercely.

"Yes you have learned much about your self." the Frelian then straightened up, at full height he was a tad taller then me."Listen boy, your past mistakes will cause you an enternal memoric sorrow." River replied with even more fire then my defense, the extreme lack of courtesy just added a harder edge. River had just played his queen, and only now did I realize that he had been readying this move ever since the beginning of our mental match.

Then for some reason I broke out in a smile, "I don't know if you have death wish or something River, I don't how you're going to get away with that sort of disrespect around Innes."

River smiled back, at first I thought I was seeing things, "Do not worry about me King Ephraim. I'm confident I can beat Prince Innes in a battle of wits, but I doubt his temper is as even as yours." the arch-historian then crossed his arms. "You are not as foolish as people make you out to be, you are actually quite bright. A little slow in deceptive wits but bright all the same."

"You think so? Well I'm quite honored to be considered bright by some smart aleck arch-historian." I answered, I had originally intended the message to be pompous but then again, mind games are tiring.

"If you have some free time today you must tutor me on the game of chess." I insisted as we walked down the hall way.

River smiled again, "I believe I have taught you enough for one day."


	2. Never Bring Back the Dead

"Prince Lyon...is it?" a curt voice asked.

The light haired Gradonian prince whirled around at the sudden voice behind him. The voice belonged to a person about his age.

Lyon whirled around wonder how in Magvel did this person get in his private library.

"Um...are you from...around here?"

"No, I'm from the opposite side of Magvel. You didn't answer my question."

"Y-yeah it's Lyon."

The intruder crossed his arms with a nonchalant fix on his expression, "Right, Lyon then. Fooling around with forbidden magic I see, but then again, forbidden is only a state of mind right?" he pointed at the stack of old wizened books that were piled up on Lyon's shiny new mahogany desk.

"I-I...uh...."

The person held up a hand to silence Lyon, "Why don't we talk about this over a game of chess?" he motioned towards a readied glass chess board that Lyon was perfectly sure wasn't there a minute ago.

His body moved as if it had a will of it's own as Lyon sat down on the opposite side of the board.

"And in case you want to know, call me River, master historian on militarism of Frelia. Feel free to go first Lyon."

Lyon blinked, some confidence this kid had to not use a royal title. But regardless took a pawn on the side his board two squares forward.

"Lack of confidence hm? Is that why you're looking for elder magic? Hoping that it'll bring you power?"

River moved his knight forward.

"My...father is dying. I can't allow that, I'm not strong enough to rule on my own."

Lyon moved a second pawn forward.

"Back from the dead...heh, so I was wrong. Only someone who has _no _confidence would do something as foolish as that. You're like that obnoxious princess from Rausten huh? Believing that the world will turn out how you want? That once your dear father comes back that everything will be okay?"

Lyon's head snapped up at the words then the tone, curt and assertive mixed with scorn and mock sympathy. River was trying to flank him, using his knights and bishops to barrel past the territorial defenses of sincereness and good will.

"I've already said, I'm not strong enough to rule on my own! It doesn't matter what sacrifice I have to make, I will save Grado."

Lyon started on the offense powered by determination and desperation.

"If you have the strength to tap into demonic powers then why can't you rule a nation? What do you think a bureaucracy is for?" River was turning to the facts and finally moving his own pawns.

"A kingdom is only as strong as its king. My mages and I have read the future, there will be an earthquake that will tear Grado apart, we need a strong leader to help fix that." Lyon proclaimed moving his bishop half way across the board.

"And that would be the perfect time to prove your versitility right? So what you're saying is that you're not worthy to be prince right? Then who who do you think would do a better job then you? Prince Innes? Prince Ephraim? Princess Larachel_? Eirika_?" Lyon flinched and River took that opportunity at once and moved his queen forward. "You should know Lyon that different people admire different things. While a novice mercenary might odolize the Desert Tiger, others prefer to seek a more intellectual path like you and me."

Lyon looked down guiltily, "I-I don't think I can ever appeal...I'm not ilke the other princes. I'm not strong or good at weaponry, I've never been." he moved a bishop.

"I see...but Lyon, with your lack of self respect you've gone to other worldly means to fix your problems. It's something the devils cooked up if you ask me. Don't you think you're being tempted? It sounds too good, bringing the dead back to life. Something like that would create...a freak of nature. It wouldn't work and if it does then it would unleash hell. Lyon...your father is gone, if you look to hard for something that should never be found then you'll destroy yourself and everyone you care about." River reached towards the chess board.

"There's a saying: When luring your enemy, build him a golden bridge. Do you understand my meaning Lyon? Actually you don't because...checkmate."

Lyon jumped and stared at the chess board, in moving the bishop away to take down the knight, he exposed his king to River's rook.

"You're distracted, I'm sure you can do much better then this." River advised. He swept all the chess pieces into the box on the bottom of the chessboard in one move and tucked the board under his arm and stood up. "You see Lyon, the point wasn't to beat me at chess. I could gague you simply because he accepted a match-an order-from a subordinate."

Lyon looked away and when he looked back River was at the doorway.

"Whatever you choose to do, I wish you well _Prince _Lyon." with that he saluted and walked away. Lyon ran to the door but as he stared down the hall, River was already gone.

"You, did you see a historian come this way? Carrying a chess board?" he asked a nearby guard.

"No sir, no one's been here since morning."


End file.
